ABSTRACT
The needs of the population for evidence-based mental health treatment are not currently being met. Too many drugs are being prescribed, and too many psychologists and social workers suffer from heavy caseloads and inadequate training. However even a dramatic increase in funding for psychotherapy would not address these population needs. Moreover, a therapy as lengthy and expensive as classical psychoanalysis cannot begin to address this problem. This chapter will suggest that brief and evidence-based adaptations of psychoanalysis should be the default option for most patients that clinicians see, and that longer-term therapy should be reserved for those who do not benefit from more targeted interventions. To apply psychoanalytic principles to a larger population, treatment also needs to be shorter with fewer weekly sessions. This change would also be in accord with the findings of psychotherapy research.
